Tallia closed her eyes and imagined what he would be like naked. Huge. That was not a comforting thought. “But what about when it comes to ruling Carinia? I do not want a man by my side. I have not come this far to trade one tether for another. Not when I have no idea of his views.”
“Then learn his views. Talk to him.”
“I didn’t bring him here for talk.”
“No, you brought him here so he can stick his big cock inside of you and make you scream in ecstasy.”
Tallia giggled nervously at Rian’s words.
“I will do everything in my power to make that happen.” Johar was leaning against the door frame, looking very much at home.
Tallia sat up in surprise, then realized he would be able to see her breasts and sank back down into the water. “Get out,” she hissed. “These are my private chambers.”
“On my planet, there is no such thing as private chambers when a woman belongs to a man.”
“I don’t belong to you yet.” She grew angrier at the slip of her words. “I will never belong to you.”
He came closer and knelt down next to the bath. “I am not interested in your people or your planet, as long as you treat them fairly. But your body—that I am interested in, and it will belong to me.”
“Get out,” she hissed again.
“No.” Stripping his shirt off, he slipped his hand into the water, his fingers caressing her arm, which made her jump away from him. “Relax.”
“I don’t want to relax.”
“Why not? I thought we might get acquainted. It might make out wedding night a lot more … satisfying.”
His hand slipped over her stomach and then upwards to caress her breasts. She tried to move away from him, but when his fingers and thumb closed around her nipple, and pinched it lightly, she found she had lost the will to move.
“Rian,” she called, wanting the girl to fetch her a towel so she could get out of the bath and away from Johar, who had the ability to render her under his spell. But the room was empty, it was only the two of them, and she shivered in expectation.
Johar knelt up, his head, his lips, drawing closer to hers. She licked her lips in anticipation and prepared herself for their first kiss. But she was not prepared. When he kissed her, his tongue slipped between her teeth and pressed for entrance, she allowed it, and he moved inside her, in and out, tasting her, waking the desire that dwelled in the pit of her stomach.
As they kissed, his hand slid down over her soft stomach and then lower, to stroke her clit. The shock of it was intense; she had never been touched down there by another, never had a hand that wasn’t hers stroke her, rub her and then slip inside her.
Losing her grip on this world, she encircled his thick neck with her arms, needing to anchor herself to him. In and out his fingers moved, before rubbing across her clit, then entering her again. Her arousal grew and she arched her back, offering herself to him. Johar broke their kiss, and cupped her right breast with his free hand, before lowering his head to suck and lick her nipple.
“Ohh,” she breathed, her whole body inflamed by his touch. No thoughts could enter her brain except those that were screaming at her to let herself go, let herself be pleasured by this man who was to be her husband. She wanted to fight it, she wanted to push him away, she could not surrender to him, there was too much at stake, and yet she had no choice.
His fingers pushed deeper, and she felt a pain, as if he had torn her innocence, and she realized he probably had, that this was his aim, to make her ready for him tomorrow night, so that he could indulge himself in her body without having her cry at the invasion. She had heard enough talk to know the first time with a man was not always pleasurable.
She sobbed, feeling used, but then his teeth grazed her nipple, his thumb brushed her clit while his finger thrust in and out of her, the angle just right that he hit a spot inside her that made her explode. She cried out, biting his shoulder as she tried to drown out the sound of her voice. He did not relent, he made her come until she was spent, and then he lifted her from the bath and cradled her against him.
Lifting her, he carried her to the bed, picking up the towel that was draped there, and wrapping her in it. He dried her skin, carefully, almost reverently, touching her, making her skin sing and her body long for him.
“Tomorrow night you will lie in my bed and I will make love to you, Princess. I will put a child in your belly, and myself in your heart.”
“Is that how your race conquers others?” she asked. “Because if it is, it will not work on me.”
“Are you so sure?” he asked, kissing her shoulder, the back of his hand caressing the side of her breasts.
“Yes.”
“Then the challenge is set,” he said, and she woke from the dreamlike state he had cast over her.
“This is a game to you?”
“You invited me in,” he said, evenly.
She opened her mouth to tell him to get out, but she couldn’t, not because she couldn’t bear to be apart from him, but because she knew she needed him, and so did he.
“I suppose you want your money?” she asked, her hurt thinly veiled.
“That is why I came to your room.”
She wanted to throw him out and tell him she had made a mistake and he wasn’t worth the price. Instead she said, “I thought you came to…” She could not finish the sentence.
“No. That was just a bonus.”
Grabbing her robe, she walked over to the computer console. It was set in a wooden desk, as if it should be hidden from view. She heard the familiar whir of the fan, and it comforted her. Touching the screen, she pulled up several of the accounts her father had used for trading with other planets. At least she had access to these, but the money was not hers to use. She would have to sell some of her mother’s jewels to pay the money back, but in the short term it should not be missed. She reasoned that she wasn’t actually stealing; she was buying a husband, that could count as trade, surely.
“Your account number?” she asked.
“55JK86D30.” He leaned against the wall, all seven foot of hulking muscle. She could almost feel the heat from his body, and she could certainly feel where he had been inside her body. Her sex ached and her skin was oversensitive, as if he had brought about a fever in her skin.
“There. Half now. Half after.”
“I’m looking forward to earning the rest of the coin. I cannot think of a more pleasurable way to make a living.”
“Than being a whore?” she asked cuttingly as she pressed send.
“I’m fulfilling a need. Your need.” He stroked her arm, and she pulled away, not wanting to appear weak, although she was weak where his touch was concerned. She tried to kid herself it was her inexperience shining through and that once he had made love to her a few times she would become immune to him, yet as she turned to look at him, taking in the way his tattoos glistened like silver across his skin, she wondered if she would ever become immune to him and his magic.
Chapter Eight – Johar
He was fighting himself. He wanted to take her to bed. After all, the bed was right there, and they were alone, and he knew she wanted him too. But it wasn’t time. She wasn’t ready. After they were married, she would be more willing. Not that she wasn’t willing now, at least in body. However, he was sure there was a war raging within her, and the side that said he was an asshole was winning.
Maybe he was an asshole. He didn’t exactly need the money but he had taken it all the same. Why? He would have to think on that one, but it was most likely down to not wanting to let himself believe he had any feelings for her. He was willing to sleep with her for money, he was willing to put a child in her belly. OK, so maybe that part was not just for money. It might have something to do with having to provide an heir for his own family. But she didn’t need to know about that. Not yet. Not until the deed was done, and the child was conceived.
“Why don’t you show me this planet of yours?” he asked, walking to t
he window. “I don’t mean the town, I mean out there, beyond the walls.”
“Are you really interested?” she asked, coming to stand next to him. He could smell the scent of her body, the citrus tang of the shampoo she used on her hair, and it excited him, he could feel his cock hardening again.
“Yes. If I’m going to stand side by side with you against your Emissars, then I think I should know what we are fighting for.”
She looked up at him and tears misted her eyes. “Do you mean that?”
“What, standing side by side?”
“Yes.”
He grinned, and cupped her face in his large hand. “How else am I going to get the rest of my money?” Yes. He was a complete asshole.
“Of course.” She turned from him and walked away, going to a closet and taking out a dress. He watched her as she let the robe slip down off her shoulders, and he admired the curve of her hips, the roundness of her thighs. He told himself it was because she looked like she would bear good strong children, but really he wanted to kiss every inch of her ample flesh.
“Come,” she said, and walked towards the door. She was dressed in black leggings made of a thick material, but she still wore a long dress over it that was split up the center. On her hips she had a dagger, and a small laser.
“Are we expecting trouble?” he asked as they walked along a corridor and down what looked like back stairs; there were no ornate carvings here.
“You should always be prepared.”
“And do you know how to defend yourself, or are they for show?” he asked.
“I can defend myself.”
“Even though you are a woman?” She glared at him, and he chuckled. “I come from a place where women learn to fight alongside men, where they are equal in all things. Or so we are told. In reality I think women are much stronger. They are just subtler and persuasive.”
“My father’s captain taught me what he could. After the death of my mother, my father went into a period of mourning, and the captain realized that there would be no male heir. He said he could not teach me everything he would have taught me if I was born a boy, but that I should know how to defend myself against what was to come.”
“Ominous.”
“He had seen how the Emissars were gathering. Like crows over a dead animal.”
“So you have an ally in the guard, this captain?”
“I had an ally.”
“What happened to him? Did he die from some mysterious death?”
“No, they sent him into deep space.”
“They really have tried to isolate you haven’t they?” Johar said, feeling some sympathy for Tallia.
“Yes, they have. My father had a small group of men who he used as councilors. Some of them would not support me because I’m a woman. And those that showed some loyalty to my family, to me, were sent away.”
“They mean to win this, don’t they?” They had passed through a narrow hallway and were heading towards what he could only guess was the kitchen, because the smells that met them were delicious, making his mouth water. It had been many hours since he had eaten anything, and many days since he had eaten anything like what was being cooked here in the large kitchen.
“Hello,” Tallia said as one of the cooks looked up to watch them entering the kitchen. To his surprise they didn’t look shocked to see her. Even though it didn’t seem the sort of place a princess would normally frequent. He couldn’t imagine her going below stairs to talk to the common folk. Yet that was where he had met her earlier on in the day.
“Hello, Mabel,” Tallia said as she went up to the woman. The woman smiled in return and did a brief curtsy, looking a little awkward. Then he realized that was because he was there, a big silver stranger here amongst the dishes of meat pies, and roast chickens.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve seen you, My Princess; I remember when you used to run down here, getting under all our feet. You used to love those honey cakes I made. You would have them at every meal given half the chance. Of course the queen would never let you have them for breakfast,” Mabel said. She was the only one who had stopped working. All around her glances were cast in their direction, but the work carried on. “What can I do for you?”
“I was going to go out in the cruiser. And I would love to take a picnic with me.”
“A picnic. I think we can get you some food together. Limall, can you fetch a basket and pack some food for the Princess, please.” Mabel looked at Johar and said, “I think you’re going to need two picnic baskets.”
Tallia almost smiled, but she kept countenance, still little cool and haughty, although her body language had softened a great deal compared to how she had been with the Emissars. “Could you make that three picnic baskets?”
“Of course, Princess.” Mabel helped pack more food into another basket. “Here,” she passed the picnic baskets over to Johar, who lifted them with ease.
“Thank you,” Tallia said. As they moved towards another doorway, which he could only presume took them outside, she turned back and said very quietly, “Do you have a message for Yassa?”
“Is that where you are going?” Mabel asked, her face lighting up. Why didn’t you say. Limall, another basket. Put in some fruit and bread. And that leftover cake.”
“I wasn’t sure.” Tallia faltered, which was unusual, and his interest was piqued.
“She would love to see you.”
“I hope so,” Tallia said. “I don’t want to bring trouble to her door, that is all.”
“What interest could they have in her? She is out of the way.”
“They have an interest in everything I do.”
Mabel reached out as if to place a comforting hand on Tallia’s, but then she pulled back. The princess might be accepted here, but she wasn’t one of them. They still knew their place. “Will you give her my love. If you don’t mind. It’s been a long time since I have visited her too.”
“I will. I’ll see you on my return. I may not be able to come straight away, but I will come and let you know she is OK.”
“Thank you. Take care, Princess.”
“I will.” Tallia picked up the last of the picnic baskets; Johar carried the others effortlessly. She led him out through the door and into another hallway. They passed room after room filled with provisions, and then at last they were out into a courtyard. Surprisingly, there were no guards here.
“This way,” she said, and walked across the courtyard and through an archway. There was a kitchen garden, filled with vegetables, being tended by four men and one woman. It was the woman who looked up as they approached. When she saw it was Tallia she bowed her head, but her eyes were fixed on Johar.
“Princess,” she said, her eyes growing wider as they approached. When she stood straight again, she took a step back. “Is everything all right?”
“Yes.” Tallia looked at Johar. “He won’t hurt you. He’s my husband-to-be.”
“You are to be married at last?” the gardener asked.
“Yes.”
The gardener’s face cracked into a smile. “We have been so worried. Talk was that a husband would not be found and that the Emissars would get control.” She looked at Johar again, but this time there was curiosity in her expression. “We didn’t think you would find a man worthy.”
“Oh, I don’t know if he is worthy. But he’ll do.”
“Charming,” Johar said, but he liked the way Tallia seemed to have a spark to her now she was outside of the palace.
“Now I know why you are here,” the gardener said.
“You do?” Tallia asked.
“You wish to have some time alone. The two of you out of the ever-seeing eye of the Emissars.”
“Yes.” Tallia nodded her head in agreement. “You know how it is.”
“Yes. Of course.” The gardener downed her tools and led them across the kitchen garden and out through a gate. “Here. It is charged. You have about two hours before the battery gets flat. I’m sorry it is
not more, but the Emissars will no longer let us repair it and the charger is faulty.”
“Why? Why won’t they let you repair it?” Johar asked as they loaded the baskets in.
“They are preparing for the end.”
“The end?” Tallia asked, and the gardener’s face looked full of horror.
“I’m sorry. I forgot my place.” The gardener looked concerned.
“Speak, please.” Tallia climbed into the cruiser, and Johar did the same, settling down into the seat next to her.
She looked around and then said quietly, “The end of your family’s reign. They say that the time has run out. But now I see that is not true.” She looked at Johar, her eyes going up and down his body, taking in every inch of his muscled physique. “You will soon breed the heir you need. He is as fertile as the jobo.”
Tallia giggled nervously, blushing at the words.
“A jobo?” he asked.
The gardener burst out laughing, and then apologized. “I am sorry. That was wrong of me.”
“It’s all right. I just hope you are right,” Tallia said, and climbed into the cruiser. “Coming?” she asked Johar.
The gardener laughed again, but this time said nothing other than, “Safe journey. Be back before nightfall.”
“Why?” Tallia asked. “I’m not afraid of anything out there.”
The gardener became serious now. “We are under curfew.”
“What?” Tallia asked.
“The Emissars brought the change in only five days ago. If you are not in the palace before nightfall, then you have to report to the captain on your return. They will come and lock these gates too,” she said, pointing at the wooden gates leading out into the world outside the palace.
“And that is not something we would want to do?” asked Johar. “I mean you are the princess; you rule the planet right now. What will the captain say to you?”
“I don’t know,” Tallia said. “Maybe we shouldn’t go.”
“Wait.” He placed his hand on hers as she made to get out of the cruiser. “They cannot tell you what you can and cannot do.”
The Princess and her Alien Rogue: Alien Romance Page 4
